RSA Events

Krista Tippett joins the RSA to explore the enduring question of what it is to be human, and how we can learn to live with greater, joy, compassion and wisdom, both individually and collectively. By weaving together insights from these conversations, she offers a distinctive, grounded and optimistic vision of 21st century humanity. The central challenges of our time, she argues - from definitions...

What are the key current and future challenges facing the gambling industry – and for the politicians and regulators seeking to protect the consumer? As Philip Graf, Chair of the Gambling Commission, comes towards the end of his term, he reflects on the changing nature of the gambling industry and the challenges ahead for regulators.

Where now for civic engagement? In the wake of a shock referendum result, and a campaign that exposed deep social, economic and political divisions, it’s clear that we need a new approach to democratic engagement. A panel of experts including Women’s Equality Party co-founder Catherine Mayer and Compass’ Neal Lawson gather to explore what the ideal 21st century political party might look like.

How much of what we do is driven by the automatic and the unconscious? When should we bring conscious reasoning to bear? What kinds of tasks is consciousness good for? Nicholas Shea and Barry Smith present a new research project bringing together philosophy, psychology and neuroscience to explore the purpose of consciousness.

What will your 100-year life look like? Does the thought of working for 60 or 70 years fill you with dread? Or can you see the potential for a more stimulating future as a result of having so much extra time? Offsetting the excess of negative debate about longevity, Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott take a fundamentally different approach - seeing long life an opportunity for a fundamental restructur...

The very near future presents a critical turning-point for the FE & Skills sector; many challenges and opportunities, not least of which are around funding, in addition to Area Reviews and the commitment to 3 million apprenticeship starts, invite a raft of questions about the future of further education and skills training. Join us to explore and re-imagine custom and practice within technical...

Author and activist Ashton Applewhite uncovers the roots of ageism and shows how ageist myths and stereotypes cripple the way our brains and bodies function. It’s time, she argues, to expose these myths, and to create a world of age equality by making discrimination on the basis of age as unacceptable as any other kind.

The RSA launches the Citizens Economic Council, asking: can citizens really be economists, and what might the extent of their role and influence in shaping economic policy be?

What are young people’s opportunities today? Do their social and digital networks offer new routes to learning? What is the meaning of education in a digitally connected but fiercely competitive and individualised world? At the RSA, Professor Sonia Livingstone presents the results of her most recent fieldwork, based on the experiences of young teenagers growing up and learning in a digital world....

Richard Clarke shares his journey from RSA Student Design Award winner to global head of advanced innovation at Nike, and explores the power of design in problem solving and shaping the future.

With the historic referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU impending, we look back on how the campaign has played out, look ahead to the likely result and post-vote fallout. Our panel of expert commentators assess the decisive issues in the remaining days before the vote, and look ahead to possible post-referendum landscape scenarios. If ‘remain’ carries the day, is the question of the UK’s rel...

As we draw nearer to 23rd June and the referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU, we bring together Nick Clegg and Andrea Leadsom from either side of the debate, in a special conversation format. By allowing each advocate to make their case positively, and by seeking clarity on what really divides them – as well as where points of agreement may lie – we’ll aim to get closer to the heart of the E...

Why don’t money and friendship mix? Can money buy happiness? Why does money have such a hold on us? The surprising psychology of money reveals that our relationship with it is more complex than we might think. At the RSA, BBC Radio 4 broadcaster Claudia Hammond explores the latest research in psychology, neuroscience, biology and behavioral economics, and offers some simple yet effective advice th...

It is time to reimagine how life is organised on Earth. We're accelerating into a future shaped less by countries and more by mega-cities; less by borders and more by connectivity. A world in which the most connected powers, and people, will win. Leading strategist Parag Khanna shows how the global connectivity revolution - in transport, infrastructure, communications - has upended the ‘geography...

What does it mean to be a man today? Although there is still much work to do, there is a growing public awareness of the need to counter the negative stereotypes that have traditionally limited girls and women. But less is being done to question the accepted rules of masculinity. Join author Rebecca Asher and our panel at the RSA to explore where these problems come from, and what can be done to a...

Britain is currently enjoying something of a boom in enterprise and self-employment. Many of Europe’s ‘unicorns’ – new firms worth over $1 billion - call the UK home. But few of the greatest firms created in the last 30 years are British, as new American and Chinese start-ups dominate the global super-league of world-beaters. Is Britain losing its edge? And if so what needs to change?

The sharing economy has grown rapidly in the last 5 years, and is now popularized by big players such as Airbnb and Uber. But with growth, come growing pains. As the sector comes of age, what steps need to be taken now to unlock its full social potential and to ensure it remains an economic model that empowers not exploits? Rachel Botsman returns to the RSA to look back on the evolution of the sec...

What informs our views on crime? Why do myths prevail across the political spectrum? How can we begin to understand crime for what it is – as a risk that can be managed and, more importantly, reduced? In this talk at the RSA, policy adviser Tom Gash analyses how our obsession with universal rules to explain crime's causes can lead us to irreversible mistaken individual cases.

In this exclusive ‘in conversation’ event at the RSA, Adair Turner and John Kay will respond to each other’s work and to the sometimes contrasting, sometimes complementary conclusions and policy recommendations they arrive at – and tackle the key questions: What does ‘good’, socially useful finance look like? Is banking too important to be left just to bankers? Do we need to revisit our understand...

Can businesses have both endless growth and be fair and sustainable? Is it possible to conceive an economic model that’s not tainted by our current financial system? Economist Christian Felber introduces an international movement that’s aiming to radically reshape our future economy.

Writer and journalist Lynsey Hanley explores the idea of class in Britain today, examining how people are kept apart, and keep themselves apart, and the costs involved in the journey from ‘there’ to ‘here’.

Professor of Chinese history and philosophy Michael Puett draws from ancient teachings to help us challenge deeply-held assumptions about how to live our lives and follow a path of self-cultivation and engagement with the world. He invites us to re-examine the impact of Western philosophy on our lives and to "unlearn" many ideas that inform modern society.

Science journalist Helen Pearson reveals insights and from five birth cohort studies of over 70,000 people begun in 1940s Britain. These rich findings have been brought together for the first time and help form the basis of how we understand inequality and health today.

The Inclusive Growth Commission is an independent, impactful inquiry designed to understand and identify practical ways to make local economies across the UK more economically inclusive and prosperous. At this Commission Launch event, we heard from Lord O'Neill, Commercial Secretary to the Treasury; Stephanie Flanders, Commission Chair and Chief Market Strategist for the UK and Europe, JP Morgan A...

How can engineering concepts help us make better decisions and create innovative solutions in a complex world? At the RSA, biomedical engineer and policy adviser Guru Madhavan reveals how the engineering toolkit can be useful in designing systems-based strategies and policies that could help in many areas of society, from easing traffic congestion to improving efficiency in health care.